


Association Deprivation

by o0JayWolf0o



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Additional Tags to Be Added, Alternate Universe - Human/Troll Society (Homestuck), Attempted Murder, Child Abuse, Child Murder, Dead!Dave, Dialoguelog, Execution, F/M, Haunting, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Loneliness, M/M, Spooooooky, big theme, break-ins, ghost au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-27
Updated: 2017-11-16
Packaged: 2019-01-25 02:34:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12521012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/o0JayWolf0o/pseuds/o0JayWolf0o
Summary: Dave Strider, a ghost, died at 13 years old and was haunting the Strider Residence. He was content with being alone - in fact, he preferred it - before three strange, gray looking creatures moved into his domain.Suddenly, he finds, he doesn't want to be alone any longer.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> heads up!   
>  i wrote this a LONG time ago and have been working on this for 2+ months, i was gonna scrap it but i decided hey lets just finish it. currently im almost done, on the second to last chapter.   
>  this will probably update once a week. it only has 4 chapters as of now, but they're kinda long chapters. if you came here for the davekat, sorry, there's little to none. same with johndave. that's pretty much it.   
>  there will be two ocs, as said in the tags, but they are MINOR CHARACTERS and are only there to wrap the story   
>  btw i fucking forgot half of the stuff i put in here and now i have to change "beds" to recuperacoons and thats gonna be hell to edit hahahahahahahahahhaa help   
>  also i really hate this story but theres so much written that i cant just trash it   
>  with that said, good luck reading

Your name was Dave Strider, and you were.. well, you’re not really sure what you were. Right now, you were wandering the halls of an empty house. You’d died long ago, and now.. you guess you were a ghost? You’re not really sure, and you don’t really care.

Earlier that day, someone had come to make plans to move here. Of course, you’d been mad- you hated any presence because it made you feel tense. Like before you died. It wasn’t right, and you were content living alone. You preferred it.

The person who had planned to move here wasn’t... human, though. It intrigued you. What was this creature doing here on earth? It had gray skin and candy-corn-colored horns, as well as sharp teeth and gray eyes. The sclera of the eye was yellow, and they wore a black shirt with dark gray pants. A zodiac was on its shirt but you couldn’t quite place what it was.

Curious, you had followed it around as it was shown around your house. Nothing was much different from it compared to humans- it had four limbs, hair, feet... all that normal stuff. It was just... weird. It spoke normally, too, but every now and then you’d hear a faint chirp or whirr stir from within its chest. The human with it had probably not noticed; you’d only been able to hear it because you were dead.

You never once revealed your presence to the two because if you did you’d just lose energy and not be able to follow them around. Ghosty things were weird, and despite the fact you’d died 5 years prior you were still not quite used to them.

There was something else, too. Being around the alien had made you feel.. tingly. Strange. Had sent things to your head telling you ‘it’s him, he’s here, where are the others, where did he come from?’ and small flashes of a dark lab that scared you. You hated it, really. It was another one of the reasons you didn’t want to scare him off.

You know you could easily send someone screaming from the house. You’d been building up energy for years, only using it to scare reckless teens because they made you tense or unsafe. They would take one glance in the window before running away for their lives.

It kind of hurt, thinking about it. You were.. not presentable. There was a permanent stain of blood in your stomach, occasionally burning as if a phantom. Sometimes you’d have a hard time breathing, as if your death was repeating itself. You guessed it was kind of scary, seeing a 17-year-old ghost with a mess of red on his shirt.

You sat down by the window, cradling your head in your hand. More of the gray creatures skirted the sidewalk, occasionally being yelled at and having to skitter away nervously. Some of them were tall - in fact, you had seen a 11ft tall one at some point, a plethora of hair falling behind it and a few other creatures surrounding them as if they were important. The shortest you’d seen was 6’1 who had a weird blue cat hood on and they were still taller than you, a measly 5’11.

A moving truck backed into the driveway, pulling you from your thoughts. Two cars followed shortly after, one a small black Honda and the other a bright red truck.

The creature that you’d seen exploring this house yesterday stepped out of the Honda, followed by two more. They all started walking toward the door. The person in the red truck stepped out, jogging toward the creatures before opening the door. You glanced to the side, watching them enter.

The one from yesterday glanced at the chair you were sitting in, brows knit tight together in confusion.

???: THAT WASN’T THERE YESTERDAY.  
His voice was loud. In fact, he didn’t _talk,_ he fucking _shouted._

???: doe2n’t matter   
???: cmon let'2 get thii2 over wiith KK

This creature had an unfortunate lisp and a yellow Gemini sign on their shit that was yellow. Four - four! - horns stood proudly on their head. They had to duck into the building.

The last one to enter was about 8ft ( damn! ) and had face paint on, a Capricorn sign on his shirt in purple. He had weird, polka-dotted pants on, too, as well as huge horns that scraped the ceiling if he stood on his toes. He seemed kind of.. out of it. Probably high.

Something in your head seemed to light up happily, as if seeing these new creatures meant something. Whatever.

???: 2o where’2 our room2

The alien from yesterday- the Gemini had called him ‘KK’- looked around before pointing upstairs.

The insanely tall Capricorn hummed, smiling slightly. He let out a stream of alternian, which sounded similar to a bunch of cicadas. His volume fluctuated slightly when he spoke.

‘KK’ or ‘Karbro’ popped his knuckles, making his way upstairs.

KK: YEAH, WELL, WE NEED TO PRACTICE ENGLISH OR WE’LL BE SENT BACK, GAMZ.

‘Gamz’ hummed and you followed the three as they headed upstairs. ‘KK’ showed them their rooms before hopping downstairs and to the moving truck, grabbing a few boxes. ‘Gamz’ and the Gemini followed after looking around their rooms.

Watching them for a few hours, you tried to get a better grasp on who they were. ‘KK’ was actually called Karkat, and ‘Gamz’ was Gamzee. The other one was Sollux. Weird names, you noted. They all had six letters, too.

You had also heard them talk about humans and refer to themselves as trolls, so you guessed that was what they were. Trolls. It was kind of funny, you guessed, because they reminded you of internet trolls, especially Karkat. Why he shouted so much was beneath you, but it was amusing.

You’re not sure when, but sometime later they had finished unpacking. Some of them found some of your old stuff and put it in boxes, locking it away in the attic. You were grateful they hadn’t got rid of them so maybe you could toy with them while you slept.

Sometimes, as they would walk around, they look at you for a minute before shaking their head. Weird. You’re fairly certain they shouldn’t see you, even for just a split second, unless you allow yourself to be seen. It was probably a troll thing, though.

Now, they were all sat in the kitchen. They were glancing around the walls, which had a few scuff marks from your brawls with bro. They were talking about painting the walls and patching up the holes, too.

Something else you’d noticed was the fact that they hadn’t touched your room whatsoever. Sollux had opened it, looked around, and left with something akin to unease on his face. You had piled some of your personal belongings in there over the years, seeing as it was your room originally. The three rooms they’d taken had been for your friends, but they’d moved out after the... Incident.

You think the only reason Sollux didn’t want to use that room was because of the slightly faded red stain in the carpet. People had tried to clean it out, knowing very well it was your blood and place of death, but it always stayed. Sollux had also told them about it, and they’d looked around a bit before leaving, too.

You sat in one of the empty chairs at the table, lounging back and watching them talk about random shit over ramen. Sometimes they’d glance at the chair for a moment and you stare back before they continued rambling.

You sighed, bored.

Eventually, they finished dinner and decided to go to sleep. Sollux marched upstairs first, shutting his doors with psionics. They were a strange thing, but you knew he could attack (as he had shocked Gamzee) or carry things. To your knowledge, Gamzee and Karkat didn’t have any of these.

You sat up from your chair as they left the kitchen, sending it skidding a bit across the floor. Karkat whipped around, suspicion in his eye, and stared at the chair.

KARKAT: FUCKING SOLLUX.

He proceeded to then follow Gamzee. You don’t know what that meant for you, what with slipping up, but he didn’t seem to question the fact that you were dead.

When they all went to sleep, you visited their rooms. First it was Gamzee. He had ICP posters clinging to the walls, a variety of green drawings scribbled messily and tacked to the wall, and various horns littering the floor. How a room could be this messy already was beyond you. You also noted the few bottles of Faygo that were drained, though one was half full and sitting at a desk next to a ‘husktop.’ The troll himself was asleep in a recuperacoon that seemed to dribble out a little into an awaiting pie tin.

Karkat was next. His walls were laced with posters of strange, foreign movies and books. From the pictures on the posters, you immediately knew they were romance. Karkat liking romance? It didn’t seem plausible, but... whatever. He had a desk with three sickles, one a pearly white and the others a mix of pink, green, white, and black. You decided not to question the fact that there was a strange splatter of color on both; a mix of burgundy, olive, purple, and dark blue.

Moving on, you glided through Sollux’s door. To your surprise, he looked up at you, awake. For a split second he looked straight into your eyes before shrugging and turning back to his computer. He had a recuperacoon with two openings _and_ two colors - red and blue - that was in the shape of a heart. His walls were mostly empty, save for the random stream of text he just jotted down. Two boards had a plethora of code written down on them, worn from use. On the other side of the room, purple bees buzzed around three large honeycomb structures. Red and blue wires laced the floors, connecting to random ‘grub’ things.

You stood behind the troll, staring at his screen. He had a knack for coding, you remember, as you try to make sense of the random shit he’s typing into a terminal.

You go downstairs after about an hour of listening to the strange click-like noises he makes. You figure you may as well do something spooky, so, after Sollux has gone to sleep, you being your ruckus.

You tilt a few paintings very, very slightly. Enough that nobody will notice it’s been tilted but it will seem out of place. Oh, you cannot wait for someone with OCD to visit and just see the horror on their face. You unplug the lamp so when they turn it on it won’t light up, and you turn the table just so. You rearrange the spices from alphabetical order to something resembling a kindergarten kid’s sheet of paper.

You float upstairs, entering Sollux’s room again. Tapping your chin for a moment, you drift over to the monitor of his computer and turn it slightly. You do the same with the keyboard and, after a moment, walk over to his pile of fabrics. Very carefully, you lift the sheets and random objects so that it’s gone loose. Snickering silently, you repeat this with all of their rooms. You honk a few of Gamzee’s horns for good measure and hide some of them around the house to squeak when you’re bored.

You snap your fingers and take the cap off his Faygo, warming the bottle up and turning the time forward on it (something you could do since birth; time was always your knack) until it almost expired. You scrawl dicks in the back of Karkat’s romance novels, enjoying your time. You understand now why toying with people is so fun, but you still hate the fact that anyone is here.

You, in a spur of the moment, snap your fingers. Closing your eyes, you focus on every clock in the house except for the one above the door. Expending a bit of energy, you dial up the minute so it’s just a bit off. Ah, yes. That’ll surely get them.

Finally done with your charades, you hover through the walls until you reach your room. You lay in the space where you died, sprawling your limbs out exactly as they had been when you died, and start pulling energy from the air around you.


	2. Chapter 2

You woke up as soon as a presence passed by your door. Jumping up, charged with energy, you followed them eagerly. Gamzee. He skitters down the stairs, strolling to the kitchen and opening the freezer. He grabs out two microwavable waffles and snags a plate from a cabinet before throwing it all haphazardly in the machine. You press a 9 just before he does, prompting him to punch in ‘9200.’ When he glances up, he groans, deleting all of the numbers before re-entering them. While he does this, you turn the oven light on before hopping up onto the counter, kicking your legs so your heels seem to skim just through the cabinet drawers.

He startles at the oven light and clicks it off, glancing behind him. He doesn’t seem scared, per-say, but mildly confused. You think you hear him mutter Sollux’s name before the microwave goes off. He grabs syrup and drenches his blueberry waffles with it, capping the bottle before snatching a fork. He traipses to the living room just as Sollux slides down the railing and twirls into view.

SOLLUX: 2up  
GAMZEE: WhAt ThE fUuUuUcK iS uP mY bRoThA  
GAMZEE: nIcE pRaNkS, bY tHe WaY  
GAMZEE: mY nUmBeR oNe MoThErFuCkEr  
SOLLUX: fiir2t off ii wa2n’t the lame a22hole that pulled tho2e excu2e2 for “prank2”  
SOLLUX: 2econd off ii thought KK wa2 your “number one motherfucker”

Gamzee huffs out in laughter again. His sense of humor is almost too big.

GAMZEE: YoU bEtTeR fUcKiN bEt KaRbRo Is My NuMbEr OnE

He apparently forgets to respond to the whole prank thing. Sollux’s head suddenly darts to you for a minute before he sighs, ambling his way into the kitchen. You fly upward and navigate to Karkat’s room, sitting down on the floor. He’s awake, staring into the mirror with huge bags under his eyes. He didn’t sleep much, you guess, as you see all the modifications you made (aside from the dicks in his novels) fixed.

The nubby-horned troll sighs, closing his eyes and shifting his face into a scowl before whipping around and stomping out the door. He made his way downstairs and you followed, though more slow. When he entered the kitchen, you floated up to the ceiling fan and gave one of Gamzee’s horns a little honk.

Laughter exploded from the clown and he choked on his waffles, before calming down.

GAMZEE: dAmN, wHo ThE MoThErFuCk AlL uP aNd HoNkEd My HoRnS?

Sollux held up his hands, thoroughly stumped. Karkat plopped himself down by Gamzee on the couch and you slumped across the back, hoping they didn’t feel the chill of your presence.

KARKAT: WASN’T ME.

Karkat angrily stuffed cereal in his mouth. You honk the horn behind the couch cushions after a moment of silence, startling everyone. Gamzee reaches behind the cushions and takes the toy, inspecting it.

GAMZEE: YoU SuRe iT WaSn’t yOu, My yElLoW SiBlInG?  
GAMZEE: yOu gOt tHeM WiCkEd sHiT MaJyYkS

You did not try to decipher whatever the fuck just came out of his mouth. Sollux probably rolled his eyes, but you wouldn’t know if he did because of his theatre shades.

SOLLUX: no, gamzee, ii happened two u2e my “wiicked 2hiit majyyk2” two cau2e your dumba22 horn2 two fuckiing honk. 2orry.

You snickered silently. Your voice was shaggy and scratchy from disuse, so you refrained from doing anything to make noise.

You decided to stop fucking around with them because your energy was draining due to all of this activity. You stuck around Karkat, looping your arm around his neck to see what he’d do. He didn’t seem to notice anything for a moment until he rubbed his neck, his hand phasing through your arm. He jerked forward, making your arm fall, before sitting back down.

After a while, Sollux ended up fixing the lamp and picture frame. Gamzee found your horn and Karkat kept bumping into the diner table so he shifted it, also discovering the spices during dinner and writing something down on the whiteboard that was hanging from the fridge.

When night hit, you let them eat dinner and you phased through the door. Though you were dead, you felt cool air blast you as you sat on a step. The sky was fading to a deep maroon and the crickets chirped similarly to how Sollux would when he muttered a stream of alternian. The murmur of wind through the trees ruffled your hair and you closed your eyes, smiling briefly. It was nice- the temperature was cold but not enough to discomfort you, the ambience was peaceful, and the homey noises coming from inside - laughter, jokes, irritated huffs, and forks hitting the bottom of bowls - set the mood. What mood that was you weren’t sure, but for once in quite some time you felt peaceful. Not exactly happy - no, that was definitely not how your felt now - but a warm, calm and peaceful being stirred in your transparent chest. Wind buffeted your shades, the thick, one-sided glass shielding your eyes just so as you turned around and entered the house once more.

When you strolled into the living room, you were surprised to see how late it was. Time usually didn’t get away from you, but you’d been outside for maybe 2 hours. Karkat was huddled in a plethora of blankets on the couch, hugging a tub of ice cream between his legs as his eyes fixated on the screen of the television. He gasped before a single, red tear trailed down his cheek and he smiled, eyes softening. Ah. It was only your second night living with them and you already knew he was watching a romcom.

A call from his phone broke the spell he was in and his face immediately set in a scowl. He reached for the remote while smearing the liquid from his eyes away from his face, grabbing his phone and sliding the answer button.

KARKAT: WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT, EGBERT?

...Egbert. Egbert? No, no, it couldn’t be. You floated over to the couch to listen in, catching a friendly, masculine voice on the other end.

It was, without a doubt, John. _Your_ John. The John who had planned to live with you, to move in, and make a life with you. The one you had cuddled with numerous times and kissed and _loved_ before he’d cancelled plans when your Bro found out about you being gay and killed you.

It was John, and you didn’t know what to do.

* * *

Two days passed. You messed with the trolls a bit more, but overall you kept thinking of John. Karkat had mentioned to his roommates the following morning that the male was going to visit and stay over for about two days before leaving. He was in town, apparently, as he was travelling to various places and seeing sights and doing what you had told him to do over the phone as you heaved your final breath.

You learned a few things by stealing Karkat’s phone and reading pesterlogs. John had told Karkat, Sollux, and Gamzee to move here because the rent was so cheap. When Karkat asked why, he only mentioned that someone had died there. Karkat had accepted the offer begrudgingly.

You now sat at the doorstep, waiting for that familiar white car to pull into the driveway. It was John’s dad’s car, you remembered. What you did not expect was a pretty, blue Honda to pause near the house and roll in. You saw his face before he exited the car.

His eyes were a bright blue, though duller than they used to be. He had a dribble of facial hair dotting his chin and his hair was styled in those familiar triangles you’d loved to much. His face is sharper than it used to be and his glasses are different - bigger. He pulls the key to his own car out and steps out, stretching. He glances at the house and his toothy grin falters for a moment before he smiles and marches up to the front door.

You slink inside, dazed, as Karkat opens the door. John wraps his arms around the male’s shoulders, pulling him into a loose embrace. After their quick hug, Karkat calls the other two trolls downstairs and seats himself on the couch.

JOHN: is the room upstairs on the-  
JOHN: uh.  
JOHN: the first one on the right.  
JOHN: is it empty?

Karkat hesitates, before nodding.

KARKAT: I WOULDN’T GO IN THERE.  
KARKAT: IT’S FUCKING CREEPY.

Rather than shutting him down, this news only excites John.

JOHN: like in the movies!

He proceeds to bounce upstairs, you following suit. True, you didn’t want anyone in your room, but it was _John_.

He opens your door, something you can’t read on his face. When he looks to the floor, he grimaces, but instantly flocks over to the box labelled ‘Photos.’ While, yes, the trolls did refuse to go in your room, they had the decency to pack up some of your things in your room. You took some of them out, of course.

John rifled through the box, tongue sticking out a little bit. Your heart seemed to melt at that - he’d done it as a teen, too. He pulled out a photo of you, John, Jade, and Rose, a sad grin on his face. Oh, shit, Rose and Jade... You really missed them.

Karkat crouched down by the - practically vibrating - teen. He squinted at the image for a moment.

KARKAT: I GET THAT’S YOU AND YOUR SISTER, AND THAT’S PROBABLY ROSE..  
KARKAT: BUT WHO THE FUCK IS *THAT*?

He was pointing at you in the picture.

JOHN: oh, well that’s dave!  
JOHN: you know him more than you think, actually. :B

Karkat snorted.

KARKAT: WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN, EGBERT?  
KARKAT: I’VE NEVER SEEN THAT DOUCHE IN MY LIFE.

John turned to the troll, a frown on his face.

JOHN: well, that’s because he’s dead.  
JOHN: he died in this room and i’m preeeeeeeety sure he’s been haunting the house ever since! 

This was news to you. Sure, a couple had attempted to move in after John left. You’d scared them off because they never stopped having sex and you really fucking hated it. Sure, kids who tried to ‘explore’ the house were usually met with horrifying results. But no, you didn’t expect John to keep tabs on the house and figure out if you were haunting it. The things you did were so... _like_ you. You’d had YouTubers come to your house, so you blasted rap songs and threw empty apple juice bottles at them.

Sollux and Gamzee were standing in the doorway and decided to enter.

SOLLUX: the fuck do you mean he’2 “haunted the hou2e”?  
KARKAT: WELL, WE *HAVE* HAD SOME SPOOKY SHIT HAPPENING.

John clapped his hands.

JOHN: what kind of spooky shit?  
JOHN: (oh, boy, this is just like my movies!)  
KARKAT: SOMETIMES GAMZEE’S HORNS HONK WHEN HE’S ASLEEP.  
KARKAT: THE PAINTINGS GET TILTED A LITTLE BIT TOO...  
KARKAT: UH.  
KARKAT: SOMETIMES MY PHONE IS SET TO TROLLIAN CONVERSATIONS I DIDN’T OPEN?  
JOHN: hmm...  
JOHN: sounds like dave to me!  
JOHN: he’s doing the little things, yeah?  
JOHN: have you had peanut butter on the back of the fridge handle yet?  
GAMZEE: mOtHeRfUcKiN yEs, BrOtHeR!

You snickered - that was good, seeing the look on Gamzee’s face when he slathered peanut butter on his hands.

JOHN: well, that must mean he’s here, right?  
JOHN: that or it’s just... someone who’s really like him?  
JOHN: i don’t know, and i don’t have an ouija board...  
JOHN: ...  
JOHN: uh, dave?  
JOHN: if you’re there, shut the door. or something. i don’t know.

You glanced at the door and raised your hands, channeling energy into them.

SOLLUX: well, ii gue22 he’2 not-

Sollux began to tease John before the door abruptly slammed shut behind him. Everyone, including John, jumped.

SOLLUX: oh shiit.

You grinned at the fear present in their faces. You were tired, now, but that was a good scare. The anxiety radiating from them you stole and stored away - one of the reasons you enjoyed scaring people.

You opened the door for them again and let John lead them out. You followed behind.

After a bit of discussion in the living room and you moving shit around to toy with them, John gasped.

JOHN: have you watched con air yet????????

Karkat hesitated before shaking his head, and you grinned. He’d put them through this shit today _and_ tomorrow, no doubt. John commanded that Gamzee get snacks, Sollux grab blankets, and Karkat get drinks while he set everything up.

Sollux lined the sofa with blankets, blatantly refusing to add pillows because “that’d be liike a fucking 4 per2on piile and ii don’t want to get my quadrant2 fiilled with you.” Summing it up to troll shenanigans, you made yourself comfortable on John and Karkat’s laps. Funny that they had no fucking idea what you were doing, you thought, aside from the cold aura you gave off.

Between Gamzee and Karkat was a bowl of golden popcorn and you would have taken some if it didn’t pass through your body. Gamzee drank faygo, though it was tinted with.. green? Karkat scolded him for it and continued drinking his own red kool-aid. John had no drink, and Sollux drank coffee with extra sugar and cream.

During the whole movie, everyone except Gamzee and John complained about various fuck-ups with the audio, filming, etc. John still giggled at his favorite parts and you tossed popcorn at people when they weren’t paying attention. The first one to fall asleep was Gamzee, who passed out during the first 20 minutes.

You don’t think anyone noticed anything (you sitting with them) so you laid your head back in Karkat’s lap and watched the remainder of the movie. You think that if John likes these trolls, then maybe you will too, eventually.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah so this is the chapter with the brief self insert lmao but its not important so blease dont leave bc of that

One whole month passes. Sure, a short time for you, but with interacting with these trolls it seems like time has slowed down thrice as expected. You play silly pranks on them for the first two weeks but then get bored and start scribbling messages on papers left out on tables. Often, you’ll watch someone throw it away without even checking. In fact, the only time someone (Sollux) even glanced at your papers, they’d asked someone else (Karkat) why they’d started writing in another color before trashing it.

Today was different. You’d left a mix of rhymes on the sheet and threw it on the clean coffee table, slumping back on the couch to gain energy. Everyone was already awake and Karkat happened to be downstairs on his palmhusk, his claws ticking against the screen.

He put his phone up a bit later and ran upstairs. Approximately 1 minute and 39 seconds passed before he tumbled back down, much less eager than before, and plopped on the cushions on the couch. He glanced at the dip you were sitting in and narrowed his eyes before snatching the note on the coffee table up.

Rather than shout at one of his fellow trolls about leaving something in a ‘mysterious quirk,’ Karkat looked down at the dip in the couch again. It looked like he was looking at your ass but he couldn’t exactly see you. Nonetheless, you puffed a bit of laughter.

KARKAT: IS IT DAVE?  
KARKAT: THE ONE WHO’S BEEN WRITING THESE.

You let your eyebrows ride up in surprise. Damn, he’d actually guessed right. 

KARKAT: THIS IS SUCH TRASH.   
KARKAT: GOD DAMN, JOHN, DON’T TELL ME YOUR ALIEN GHOST FRIEND WAS ACTUAL SHIT AT SLAM POETRY.

Your previous surprise dissolved into confusion and an urge to respond. How  _ dare _ he call your raps shitty! He’s got no right to say that after willingly watching (and loving and buying posters for) hundreds of absolutely trash romance movies.

Using up some of your power, you steal one of Sollux’s many sticky notes lying around (seriously, did he really need this many reminders? You’d understand if he was mentally ill, which he probably is, but jeez, dude) and scribble out a note. 

DAVE: hey man i worked real hard on those while i was alive way to show some sympathy

He plucks the sticky note from the table and reads it, a bit of fear in his otherwise angry eyes. 

KARKAT: RIGHT, WELL YOU STILL SUCK   
KARKAT: ONE WOULD THINK THAT AFTER ALL THESE FUCKING YEARS OF YOU BEING DEAD,   
KARKAT: (however the fuck long that is),   
KARKAT: YOU’D IMPROVE AT YOUR SHITTY SLAM POETRY.   
KARKAT: YOU’VE PROVED ME WRONG.

Instead of replying, you sit back down on the couch and sigh through your nose.

The rest of the day is pretty uneventful. You ghost through walls to keep up with the awkward scrambles up and down the stairs, open chip bags that were previously rolled up to hopefully get them stale, and open and shut doors at random. When night falls, Karkat ends up passing out on the couch with one of his romcoms droning on in the background. You set up on the floor by one of Karkat’s arms, which is currently hanging down from the couch, when something catches your eye.

Behind the windowsill, you notice a car pause by the house and pull in the driveway. You squint your eyes, looking past the transparent white curtains to get a peak at whoever is in the car. You can’t see their face in time, though, as they shut the car off and dash to the back.

They pull out a back and wave someone from the passenger side of the car, and, as you drift to the window, you notice they’re wearing complete black. One has horns that twist upward and round into what can only be described as a heart and the other has long, sharp horns that go straight into the sky. Neither of them speak, instead waving their hands around in what seems to be sign language.

After a bit of studying them, you notice neither bearing a sign or any trace of their blood color on them. A sliver of skin on the second troll shows they’re not an adult, being a light grey. You’d heard Karkat once talk about adults and it wasn’t exactly pretty. They had black skin, so, no, you’re glad these two are still ‘teens’ or whatever.

You think they may just be some of Karkat’s friends but push that idea aside rather quickly when you see a flash of metal and an obvious gun. 

Well, shit.

You dash over to Karkat and grab something (a pencil) from the table, unceremoniously smacking it against his head and throwing his blankets (or, as he likes to call it, a snuggle plane) to the ground. He groans and rolls back, seeming to have no intention of getting up. Time’s running out, though, and you make a weird noise of frustration. A moment later, you’re glad he can’t hear you. It was kind of embarrassing. Back to the task at hand, you curl your arms around the troll and  _ yank _ , tugging him off the couch. He shrieks, limbs flailing, though you don’t focus on it as you use a massive amount of energy to collide the table with the door and somewhat barricade it.

KARKAT: WHAT THE FUCKING HELL IS THIS FRESH SHIT?

You brush the curtains open for him. He looks a bit pale and you feel a sliver of sympathy for him. You don’t have time to focus on this, though, as the two trolls from before are sneaking up to the house. 

What you did with Karkat you repeat to the other two trolls. Gamzee gets all of his horns honked at once and when he budges awake you slam his door open, leading him to the hallway. Sollux gets his covers thrown off and mind honey dripped onto his forehead until he awakens, scrambling down the stairs quickly at Karkat’s panicked shouting.

You take a moment to let the gravity of the situation sink in as you sink down the stairs. Gamzee, Karkat, and Sollux are pushing furniture against the doors and closing the blinds of the windows. You’re afraid for their lives.

SOLLUX: gamzee, u2e your chucklevoodoo2 or 2ome 2hiit!   
SOLLUX: DO 2OMETHIING!  
GAMZEE: i AM!

The clown looked around for a bit before shoving both of the warmer-blooded trolls into the kitchen. 

GAMZEE: stay right motherfuckin here

He grabbed something from thin air - his sylladex, you believe. They were a pair of juggling clubs, you think.

The door lurched open.

Gamzee let out a honk and ducked behind the wall, ushering his friends deeper into the kitchen. You knew what to do, you thought, as you looked at your blood-stained hands.

Shit, you hadn’t done this in a while, but every time someone saw the mess of red on your shirt they’d turned tail and fled. Closing your eyes, you pulled forward the fear of Karkat, Sollux, and Gamzee (as well as the robbers, you noticed) and channelled it into energy. You felt yourself ‘materializing’ as you became visible and stood eerily still like the antagonists in horror movies did. You stared the intruders straight in the eyes, tilting your head ever so slightly. You probably looked like an idiot, standing there and doing that dog thing where they tilted their head or some shit, but apparently it freaked the two trolls out. The one with the gun aimed shakily to shoot you but you just shook your head and stepped to the side.

Predictably, their shot missed and you tackled them. If you weren’t a ghost, maybe they’d have felt it, but you really just made them so scared they fell down. You made yourself invisible, exhausted, and shut the door before grabbing their weapons. By now, both trolls were pressed against the wall, red and blue lines doing tangoes around their black outfits.

KARKAT: WHO ARE YOU

Karkat’s hands shook violently as he clutched his two sickles with white-knuckled grips.

The intruders didn’t respond. Gamzee did something that made them sigh, probably holding off on those ‘chucklevoodoos’ you’ve heard so much of. 

KARKAT: I ASKED YOU A FUCKING QUESTION!

Karkat shoved a sickle in each of their faces.

???: !   
???: fuck dont hurt me

That was the one with the heart-shaped horns. They had a deep, rumbly voice, obviously male. 

???: !m iadyyn wol+ah   
JADYYN: they are kat!na danyul

Jadyyn’s accent was weird, to say the least. They pronounced their ‘j’s as a ‘y’ for some reason, though you didn’t bother to really ask - mostly because you were dead.

KARKAT: WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?  
JADYYN: we were sent by our boss to uh   
JADYYN: fuck    
JADYYN: stop wav!ng that !n my face dude   
JADYYN: iegus ! dont wanna fuck!n d!e here    
JADYYN: !m only tell!ng you th!s so you dont k!ll me   
JADYYN: anyways we are supposed to k!ll a mutant   
JADYYN: we dont really want to but she sa!d shed iust k!ll us !f we dont and no thanks !d rather not d!e today   
JADYYN: preferrably any day but whatever

Karkat seemed to consider the two for a moment. Finally, he sighed.

KARKAT: SOLLUX, LET THEM GO.   
SOLLUX: what are you, iin2ane? no.   
KARKAT: SOLLUX.   
SOLLUX: fiine!

The two unceremoniously dropped to the floor.

KARKAT: NOW, IF YOU’LL BE SO KIND:  
KARKAT: GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE.   
KATINA: Bvt what abovt ovr boss? She’ll kill vs, no dovbt?  
KATINA: Please, don’t let her find ovt? Fake yovr death, or something?   
KARKAT: NO! WHY THE UTTER FUCK WOULD I WASTE TIME ON SOME JACKASSES WHO TRIED TO FUCKING MURDER ME LITERALLY NOT EVEN 5 MINUTES AGO?   
KATINA: Please? D=   
KARKAT: NO!  
KARKAT: GUESS WHOSE PROBLEM THAT IS?  
KARKAT: NOT MINE!  
KARKAT: NOW, AS I FUCKING SAID, GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HOUSE!   
JADYYN: okay we w!ll iust expla!n to me one th!ng   
JADYYN: who was the human w!th all that blood   
KARKAT: ...WHAT?  
JADYYN: the guy stand!ng there when we got the door open   
JADYYN: who the hell was he   
JADYYN: !f youre tortur!ng humans or some sh!t thats really messed up of you   
JADYYN: obv!ously ! wont say anyth!ng but st!ll 3B/   
JADYYN: thats not fuck!ng r!ght dude   
KARKAT: I DON’T FUCKING KNOW WHAT KIND OF SHIT YOU’RE PULLING BUT I FUCKING WANT YOU GONE ALREADY!

Jadyyn and Katina scramble outside after a fierce push from the troll.  They leave in a hurry, completely forgetting their weapons. You end up slumping on the ground, closing your eyes. You need to ‘recharge.’ You’ve never been this exhausted before, what with defending the house. You hear Karkat murmuring worriedly to himself. You don’t focus on what he says.

You’re too busy letting your consciousness - or whatever you have left of it - slip away.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> last chapter folks. the ending sucks. also this is really long bc i didnt want to make it into two chapters. sorry.

When you come to, you’re lying on the steps. Or, rather, you’re sprawled out half on the floor at the base of the steps and your leg is pretty much clipping through the stairs. You stand up, rubbing your head and glancing around.

The living room has been cleaned up, the furniture moved back to its place. You know it’s been longer than a day - your time aspect, whatever that means, allows you to keep track of what time it is and how much time has passed. You stand up, stretching even though you don’t need to, and wander to a cluster of voices in the kitchen.

Karkat, Gamzee, and Sollux, are huddled around a laptop (Sollux’s, you suspect), murmuring to themselves. 

KARKAT: I MEAN, HE HASN’T DONE ANYTHING, SO MAYBE WE SHOULD JUST GIVE UP AND GO.   
GAMZEE: WhAt If He GeTs LoNeLy?   
KARKAT: THAT’S HIS FUCKING PROBLEM, NOT OURS. JUST FUCKING CALL THEM ALREADY.  
SOLLUX: okay fiine

You don’t know what they’re discussing, so you watch as Sollux picks up his palmhusk and dials a number, his claws clicking lightly against the screen.

SOLLUX: 2up   
SOLLUX: yeah that’2 u2   
SOLLUX: no not now   
SOLLUX: ye2   
SOLLUX: ye2   
SOLLUX: okay   
SOLLUX: ye2   
SOLLUX: ii mean we liive about two miile2 away from that   
SOLLUX: okay   
SOLLUX: okay   
SOLLUX: ok 2ee you there

He ends the call.

KARKAT: WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?   
SOLLUX: he 2aiid he want2 two meet u2 at the park tomorrow to plan everythiing   
GAMZEE: tHe KiDdIe PaRk?  
SOLLUX: yep   
SOLLUX: at ten fuckiing am two   
KARKAT: JEGUS CHRIST.   
SOLLUX: yeah whatever   
SOLLUX: let2 ju2t 2tart packiing

You don’t know what he means, but he shuts the laptop and it flies away upstairs, covered in blue and red sparks. Karkat groans and shuffles upstairs, Gamzee sipping a caprisun as he follows. Sollux grins smugly and begins cooking some kind of grub in the microwave before lounging on the couch.

KARKAT: SOLLUX, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?   
SOLLUX: iim already done   
SOLLUX: 2ucker2

Muttering from upstairs faded away after a slam from what you can only guess was Karkat’s door resounded. Sollux fished his meal from the microwave and slurped up what you would define as ‘chinese bug food’, but hey, it smelled pretty damn good. 

When Sollux finished and had two meals of the stuff, he picked up a remote and turned the Television on. You didn’t focus on what was on, and it seemed he didn’t either, because his phone began to ring and he turned the volume down.

SOLLUX: hey AA   
SOLLUX: yep   
SOLLUX: yeah   
SOLLUX: well yeah becau2e he’2 kiind of freakiing gamzee out and iit2 me22iing wiith my p2iioniic2 when he’2 around   
SOLLUX: yeah he’2 riight next two me haha   
SOLLUX: ii thiink iit2 dave   
SOLLUX: but al2o the whole break iin thiing you know we have to leave now

That got you to jolt. You had your suspicions that he’d been talking about you, but now you really knew. Also, how could he know where you were?

You felt an extremely weak force close around you, and upon looking down, you see that your body has been surrounded by small, blue-red sparks.

SOLLUX: woah, he’2 clo2er than ii thought   
SOLLUX: ii diidn’t even know ii could do that    
SOLLUX: no iim fiine   
SOLLUX: yeah    
SOLLUX: ye2! plea2e do   
SOLLUX: becau2e gamzee wiill be happy    
SOLLUX: he thiink2 the nerd wiill be lonely when we leave

You’re confused. They’re going to leave? You understand that they want to go because of the whole robbery thing, but you didn’t really think it was because of  _ you. _ You’d even stopped honking Gamzee’s horns as much.

You don’t want them to leave.

SOLLUX: waiit liike now   
SOLLUX: fuck but they’re packiing up   
SOLLUX: ii diid iit earliier   
SOLLUX: um yeah   
SOLLUX: ok 2eeya iin fiive 

You’re not sure who he was talking to. You only know they go by one of his nicknames - AA. Whatever that stands for.

SOLLUX: AA i2 comiing over guy2   
SOLLUX: 2he want2 two talk two dave

You hear Gamzee honk in reply, but any sign Karkat had heard was nonexistent. You overheard Sollux say ‘AA’ was coming over in five minutes, though you kind of doubt that. Whatever. Instead of focusing on the conversation, you float through the ceiling and wheel yourself over to Karkat’s room. 

He’s grumbling, pulling books from his shelves and carefully stacking them in various boxes. He puts some on his desk, the ones that have paper sticking from the sheets, and tosses his clothes in a big trash bag. He already has a box labelled in angry blocky writing, ‘KARKAT’S WRITING’. You don’t know what Karkat’s writing is, but you’re not sure you  _ want _ to know.

You realize, just a bit too late, that Sollux’s field around you pertains. Karkat glances your way, takes a second glance, and yelps.

KARKAT: JEGUS FUCKING CHRIST, I FORGOT YOU EXIST.   
KARKAT: I DON’T EVEN CARE AT THIS POINT, JUST.. LEAVE ME ALONE, OR SOMETHING.   
KARKAT: DON’T TOUCH MY SHIT.

You abide by those rules, suddenly feeling more lonely than ever. Karkat had been your favorite, next to Gamzee, but it seemed he hated you. From what you know, you’re fairly certain Gamzee’s afraid of you, but Sollux was only annoyed with you.

You weren’t wanted.

You feel something strange, and float back downstairs to an unfamiliar face. Her eyes are pristine white, like yours, and her lips are pulled into the slightest frown as she glances around. She’s a troll, you know, by her gray skin and curling ram horns. Her hair flows behind her and falls over a tattered skirt with the Aries sign printed in burgundy on her chest.

SOLLUX: hii AA

Sollux is looking at his phone rather than the other ghost, whom you’re gaping at. Sollux can’t see her, can he? AA smiles at you before pulling her phone out again and typing something to him. Sollux simply nods and returns to the couch.

AA: s0   
AA: y0ure dave   
AA: im aradia    
ARADIA: lets talk   
DAVE: uh sure

It’s strange talking to another ghost. You’re not sure you like it.

ARADIA: h0wd y0u die   
DAVE: murdered    
ARADIA: 0h   
ARADIA: thats nice   
DAVE: i guess   
DAVE: what about you

She hesitates.

ARADIA: im n0t sure   
ARADIA: its been 18 years th0ugh s0 im as 0ld as s0llux   
DAVE: oh   
DAVE: its been 5 years for me   
DAVE: at least i think so   
DAVE: its kind of lonely here   
ARADIA: its l0nely f0r me t00   
ARADIA: y0u d0 k0w why theyre m0ving 0ut right   
DAVE: yeah   
DAVE: im scaring them or some bull shit   
DAVE: i guess the robbery spooked them too   
ARADIA: y0u c0uld say that   
DAVE: well what do you mean then   
ARADIA: karkat is a mutant   
ARADIA: im sure y0uve figured that 0ut   
ARADIA: well n0w the c0ndesce kn0ws where they are   
DAVE: how   
DAVE: those guys got killed so they couldnt have said anything   
ARADIA: s0llux saw trackers 0n them   
DAVE: oh   
ARADIA: the c0ndesce is g0ing t0 send imperial dr0nes t0 kill him now   
ARADIA: they have t0 get away fr0m here and s00n   
DAVE: oh that makes sense   
DAVE: im gonna guess you were more lively before you died   
ARADIA: pr0bably   
ARADIA: i d0nt remember much bef0re my death actually   
ARADIA: i died when i was y0ung   
DAVE: that makes sense   
DAVE: i was a lot more enthusiastic about shit before i died though   
DAVE: i mean i didnt show much emotion but you know i was happy at least   
DAVE: sometimes   
ARADIA: s0metimes 0_0   
DAVE: i didnt have the greatest life yknow   
ARADIA: 0h   
DAVE: i dont wanna talk about it   
DAVE: anyways why are you even here   
ARADIA: i d0nt kn0w   
ARADIA: i havent talked t0 an0ther gh0st in a while i guess   
DAVE: makes sense

Gamzee wobbles down the stairs, ducking to avoid scraping his horns, and phases through you both. You shiver.

ARADIA: n0t used t0 that are y0u   
DAVE: not yet   
ARADIA: ha  
GAMZEE: hEy SoLbRo   
GAMZEE: Im DoNe PaCkInG   
SOLLUX: damn that wa2 fa2t   
GAMZEE: yEaAaH hAhAhA   
GAMZEE: sO wHeN aRe We GoNnA aLl Up AnD bUsT tHiS jOiNt?   
GAMZEE: My ChUcKlEvOoDoOs ArE cRyIn OvEr HeRe :o(   
SOLLUX: plea2e never 2ay that agaiin   
SOLLUX: but anyway2 iit’ll be tomorrow   
SOLLUX: actually ii already 2aiid thii2 weren’t you lii2eniing   
GAMZEE: i HaVe No IdEa   
SOLLUX: you’re iin2ufferable   
GAMZEE: :o)

You laid back. You were tired, and you feel like Aradia could sense that.

ARADIA: need t0 rest   
DAVE: yeah   
ARADIA: 0k   
ARADIA: ill talk t0 s0llux f0r a bit and tell y0u if s0methings up   
DAVE: ok

You settled down beside the stairs and stretched. Aradia pulled out her palmhusk and began to prattle on while you let the world around you become a dull whisper.

* * *

When you come to, Aradia is on the couch, staring at you. You don’t think it’s creepy because you would probably do the same thing. Her presence is still forgein to you; the last ghost you spoke to went by the name of Dani and had been killed in a car crash.

It’s dark outside.

ARADIA: i sp0ke to jadyyn and katina   
DAVE: those are the robbers right   
ARADIA: yes   
ARADIA: they were executed just recently   
ARADIA: they were really nice actually   
ARADIA: jadyyn is a l0t like y0u   
ARADIA: he reminds me 0f karkat   
DAVE: how   
ARADIA: he acted like y0u but he als0 had an interest in r0mance n0vels and g0t angry easily   
ARADIA: his handle was galaxyturnfold because he als0 really liked space 0u0   
DAVE: oh   
DAVE: thats cool

You both lapsed into silence, which would have been awkward, for you had been alive. As ghosts, though, it was mostly beneficial - reserve energy while also getting something you want; quietness. 

The house was soundless, the rythmic beating of the washing machine and the dishwasher the only thing disturbing it. The Television was on, the quiet noise of it just above a murmur. You floated up the stairs, tracing your hands along the wall.

Tomorrow, this house would be empty.

It hurt, you felt, as a dull ache panged in your chest. The pictures lining the walls of alternia and Karkat trying to avoid the camera, Sollux with a fuchsia blooded troll and smiling happily. Stains of spilled faygo on the carpet or stray bottles of face paint, novels that had angry, gray text scratched into it.

Yeah, you’d miss this.

You entered Karkat’s room, thankful the field around you had diminished since Sollux had gone to sleep. Or, well, you think he went to sleep - and hope so, too. You’ve started to feel more than a ghost should, that as in you care for people other than John, Jade, and Rose.

Karkat is sleeping, snoring softly, clutching a pillow to his chest. He’s in his pile rather than his recuperacoon for whatever reason. His face is relaxed, as you’ve seen it many times while he sleeps, and he has a small smile present. Hair flutters over his cheeks and he sighs, rolling over, the pillow still in his grasp. Before he rolled over, you noticed his eyes rolling behind his eyelids - he was dreaming - and you’ve never seen the bags under his eyes so… invisible. You’ve never seen him happy before now, either - though this may be because he rarely, if ever, sleeps.

You float over to Sollux’s room, blinking at a warmth stirring in your chest. Karkat had been cute. Sollux is fast asleep, yellow-tinted drool seeping from his gray mouth, his glasses folded neatly on his cluttered nightstand. He is… also in his pile. His items are thrown off to the side, his blanket just over one leg, and his boxers - decorated with purple bees - are shown clearly to the world. You leave the room.

Gamzee is in a ball of blankets when you find him, his face paint off and his hair even more wild than usual. He’s twitching, just barely, making not the slightest sound. You watch him rub his cheek on a blanket and cringe the slightest as his horn rips the sheets.

Finally, you go back downstairs. You’re more energized than usual, and decide to stay awake with Aradia for the night. Besides, if the house is going to be abandoned, you might as well spend time with some kind of company - even if they’re just like you.

* * *

Karkat wakes up first at godawful 6 in the morning, tumbling from his pile and yawning. His face is scrunched before he sees the time, listening to be sure anyone else may be awake, and lets his guard down. He stumbles down the steps, blinking away the glazed look from his eyes, and walks into the kitchen. He doesn’t even notice the Television, droning away.

He ends up at the coffee machine, plucking a sticky note you wrote from it. You’d known he was going to want coffee so you started it beforehand. He huffed, crumpling the note and muttering a thanks to you.

He made himself a large cup - all of the coffee - and began draining it instantly, not bothering to add sugar or creamer to the mix, and you noticed his eyes scrunch up in distaste. Huh, so even coffee addicts hate the taste of black coffee, eh? You wouldn’t know - you’ve never had coffee before.

Time passes. Karkat spends it reading and annotating his novels and watching movies on the big screen, murmuring random things old people would probably complain about. It’s kind of funny.

Halfway through scribbling down something on a sticky note to pluck into his book, a red flower crown, covered in red and blue sparks, floats lazily to Karkat and lands safely on his head. He doesn’t seem to notice - he’s too focused on his novel - and Sollux quietly skids down the stairs.

SOLLUX: morniing KK   
KARKAT: HEY.

Sollux suppressed a snort and sneaks his phone out, snapping a quick picture. Aradia has a small smile on her lips, her white eyes following Sollux as he strides into the kitchen. Karkat is still absorbed in the book, sniffling as he pastes another note to the page. Sometimes he doodles, and when he does, he grabs the entire pencil with his hand. It’s childish, but you’re fond of it.

You clear the hair from your shades and listen intently. You can hear Gamzee ruffling around, probably shutting off the alarm he has blaring upstairs. 

SOLLUX: iim takiing 2ome of your coffee   
KARKAT: GOOD LUCK WITH THAT.  
SOLLUX:   
SOLLUX:    
SOLLUX: godammiit you drank iit all diidn’t you

Karkat snorted.

KARKAT: WHAT ELSE DID YOU EXPECT?   
SOLLUX: ii don’t know

Sollux’s phone pinged. He opened it up and read whatever message he got, then looked around blankly before focusing on the spot Aradia was at.

SOLLUX: bye AA   
ARADIA: t00dles   
DAVE: did you just say toodles   
ARADIA: yes 0u0   
DAVE: get out

Aradia smiled and left, though Dave knew she wasn’t actually joyful. Most ghosts really weren’t. It was kind of depressing.

Gamzee stumbled downstairs, his hair wet as if he’d already taken a shower (he probably had - he was quick with them). Sollux had made himself a snack (aka gotten gummies from the cabinet and was wolfing them down) while Karkat had closed his novel and was passing Gamzee on the way to his room. On the way, he paused, reached into his hair, and scowled deeply at the red flower crown that had been on his head.

KARKAT: YOU FUCKASS!    
SOLLUX: what diid you fiinally fiigure iit out   
KARKAT: CHOKE ON A BULGE, SOL!   
SOLLUX: comiing on strong now aren’t you   
KARKAT: I’M NOT BLACK FOR YOU, WHAT THE HELL?

Instead of replying, Sollux got a face full of flower crown and he sputtered. Karkat ended up laughing before coughing to cover it up, stomping full-force up the stairs with a face that looked like he was trying to swallow a cockroach. 

You liked Karkat’s laugh. It was kind of giggly, high pitched and grate-y. He didn’t laugh much though - and you wouldn’t see him much after this. 

Sollux had apparently taken a shower earlier or just hadn’t because after about 30 minutes he summoned everyone to the car. He and Gamzee, in that time, had moved furniture and put it in box for easy access to move. They ended up speeding away, leaving you alone in the house for a time. 

Without them, it was quiet, as if it were night time without their soft snores sounding from upstairs. You were both thankful and disappointed when they had arrived - they’d been chattering, making small talk with each other, yes, but as soon as they entered the building, they left, hauling boxes into a large moving truck.

This was it.

They’d be gone.

An hour passed, then two, then three, of you following them blindly, listening to them speak with a twist in your ghostly heart. By hour four, they were done completely, grabbing simple stuff they had forgotten - posters on the walls, trinkets on the windowsills, a stray plastic cup on the floor

And then they left, again, but not without pausing to say something to you.

SOLLUX: you miight not even be here but   
SOLLUX: sorry for leaviing you alone   
SOLLUX: ii thiink you’re pretty ok, DV

He’d given you a nickname. DV.

Karkat had spoken to you while ripping down a poster from his wall.

KARKAT: I DON’T KNOW YOU VERY WELL BUT YOU PROBABLY KNOW ME PRETTY WELL OR SOME SHIT.   
KARKAT: SORRY I CAN’T STAY.

That’s all he had said.

Gamzee hadn’t spoken to you at all, just stared at the space you were sitting at for 19.4 seconds before walking outside to join everyone else.

You were now alone, in the home you once called yours, but it didn’t feel like your home. It felt like theirs, and it was lonely, almost colder, without them. It was so desolate, almost like a festival the day after it ended.

You couldn't feel the tears cascade down your cheeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah thats all i guess. thanks for reading? i hope it wasn't too shitty

**Author's Note:**

> kudos and comments are appreciated   
>  this took a long fucking time to code the dialoguelogs   
>  [ tumblr ](https://o0jaywolf0o.tumblr.com)


End file.
